


Ambition

by iceprinceofbelair



Series: Lupin Ficlets [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Marauders, Prefect Remus, Teaching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-06
Updated: 2015-01-06
Packaged: 2018-03-06 11:01:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3132071
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iceprinceofbelair/pseuds/iceprinceofbelair
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Remus really wants to be a teacher but he knows it's unlikely to happen. So, he settles for the next best thing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ambition

**Author's Note:**

> I kind of rushed this towards the end so sorry if it doesn't seem polished. I was running out of time to write.

Remus Lupin is the most patient person in the entire world – ask anyone. He’s always been that way and, since being made a Prefect, he’s had an influx of young Gryffindors seeking him out to explain their Charms homework, help them practice Transfiguration, and tutor them in Defence. Rain or shine, in sickness and in health, Remus has never turned anyone away.

It began in his third year when the Marauders were settled by the fire and enthusiastically planning their next Great Prank – though none of them knew it, Fred and George Weasley would forever retell the story to anyone who would listen – but nobody seemed to notice that Remus was being abnormally quiet. His eyes were continually wandering to where a skinny first-year sat in the corner. He’d been staring at a piece of parchment with a look of utter despair on his face for the past ten minutes.

“Moony?” Sirius grinned, rapping his knuckles lightly against his friend’s skull. “Anybody home?”

Remus offered a half-hearted smile in response but his eyes strayed back to the boy once more. He looked to be on the brink of tears. Remus felt his stomach contract painfully. Sirius followed his gaze and, for a moment, Remus expected mocking. Instead, he found himself pleasantly surprised when Sirius said quietly, “Go over there and help him before one of you explodes.”

Remus wasted no more time in approaching the distressed boy, armed with patience and understanding. In no time, he learned that the root of the boy’s problems lay within the fairly simple theory behind the levitation charm. After quickly skimming what he’d written, Remus noticed that it was actually mostly right. He’d just gotten himself tangled in a web of confusion and was apparently struggling to untangle it.

Taking up the free seat next to him, Remus started from the beginning, answering questions as clearly as possible and correcting the tiny mistakes he found. He praised every positive aspect of the boy’s first attempt and was pleased to see him smile with pride. The boy was breathless with excitement by the time they’d finished rolled up his essay with care, proclaiming this to be the first thing he’d done right since he got here.

Remus was horrified to hear that he considered himself stupid.

“Listen to me,” he said seriously, keeping his voice low. “You’re not stupid. You’re a lot smarter than you give yourself credit for. By the looks of things, you know this stuff. You just had a little trouble piecing it all together but that doesn’t make you stupid.”

The boy sighed. “Everybody thinks it.”

“Everybody’s wrong,” Remus told him honestly. “Who told you that?”

“Nobody!” The boy said, a little too quickly. Before Remus could challenge that, he slumped a little in defeat. “They don’t- they don’t exactly say it. They just make me feel it.”

Remus frowned. “Your teachers make you feel this way.”

The boy’s lack of response told him everything.

“Well, I’m going to let you in on a little secret.” Remus went on. “If they make you feel stupid then they’re not very good teachers.”

The boy’s eyes widened and he looked behind him in case any of the unnamed teachers had creeped up behind him without his knowledge. If anything, it only confirmed Remus’ suspicions that he was, in fact, talking about a teacher – or teachers – at Hogwarts. That realisation led to another; that this was a current and ongoing problem.

Remus saw him stifle a yawn and gave the boy’s hair a ruffle. Before he could say anything else, the boy said quietly, “You’re a really good teacher.”

Remus felt a warmth settle in the pit of his stomach. This was how kids should always feel about learning. It shouldn’t be stressful; it shouldn’t make them feel inferior. With another smile, he suggested that it was probably time for bed and reminded him that he was always welcome to come and find him if he was ever stuck. 

Now, when another young student approaches Remus for help, James laughs and refers to that frustrated first-year as Patient Zero. Remus knows him better as Thomas and, just as Remus had said, he’s been steadily blossoming into a capable student.

Remus knows that his friends will tease him about the teacher dynamic he has going on with the younger kids for as long as they have working voice boxes. Thankfully, he also knows that, no matter how they choose to show it, they’re glad he’s getting the opportunity to do what he loves. Nobody voices it but they’re all very aware that the chances of Remus finding a job at all, let alone one he loves, are very slim indeed so they’re keen to encourage him.

But seeing Remus like that, surrounded by the students he’s come to refer to affectionately as “his kids”, awakes an ache in the hearts of his friends. Because he deserves so much more. Anyone know knows him can see that he’s a born teacher. Gifted with endless patience, intelligence, and a passion for the profession, he’d be an absolute dream for any student. (He’s even managed to tutor Peter to achieve a P in his latest potions test, a dramatic improvement from his previously consistent T’s.) And it destroys James a little when he watches Remus gently guiding his kids towards the right answer in a way which makes them feel like they really knew all along because he knows Remus will likely spend his life scraping together knuts just to afford something to eat, somewhere to sleep.

It’s not fair.

When Remus gets his Prefect badge, nobody is surprised. And though Sirius is quick to suggest that McGonagall probably hopes he can keep his friends in check, he knows as well as anyone that he deserves it. 

(And there’s nothing to complain about, really. It’s not like the badge has quashed his mischievous streak. If anything, Remus seems to be newly inspired by the pranking possibilities it brings with it. And Sirius will never bemoan that.)


End file.
